Indigenous Studies Commons^™

‘Atamai-Loto, Moe Faka‘Ofo‘Ofa-‘Aonga: Tongan Tā-Vā Time-Space Philosophy Of Mind–Heart And Beauty–Utility, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana M. Lear, Kolokesa U. Māhina-Tuai, Sione L. Vaka, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. KaʻIli

Pacific Studies

This collection of critical essays seeks to explore as a text some key aspects of Tongan concepts and practices of the sino body, ‘atamai mind, and loto heart, on the one hand, and faiva performance, tufunga material, and nimamea‘a fine arts, on the other hand, in the broader context of Indigenous Tongan Tā-Vā Time-Space Philosophy of Reality. These physical–bodily, psychological–emotional, and social–cultural, and artistic and literary aspects will be reflected upon at the fakafelavai intersection, or fakahoko connection and fakamāvae separation, of ontology (i.e., ways of being) and epistemology (i.e., ways of knowing) and of beauty/quality (i.e., what is of …

Tongan Hoa: Inseparable Yet Indispensable Pairs/ Binaries, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana M. Lear, Kolokesa U. Māhina-Tuai, Sione L. Vaka, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. KaʻIli, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

We dissect hoaism as a fundamental in Tongan philosophical thinking and feeling that is based in the concept and practice of hoa as inseparable yet indispensable pairs/binaries, with examples taken from across nature, mind, and society. From a tāvāist philosophical perspective, everywhere in reality, as in nature, mind, and society, is intersection, and there is nothing above and beyond connection and separation. This is derived from the general tāvāist fact that all things in reality stand in eternal relations of exchange, giving rise to order and conflict, both having the same logical status, when equal and opposite identities, entities, or …

Sino, ‘Ilo, Moe Ongo: Body, Knowing, And Feeling, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana M. Lear, Kolokesa U. Māhina-Tuai, Sione L. Vaka, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. KaʻIli, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

This essay critically examines the intersection of sino body, ‘ilo knowing, and ongo feeling. The latter two are considered indivisible tendencies situated in the former, which is, in turn, taken merely as a vaka/hala medium/vessel/vehicle. The authors address examples from Tongan faiva performance arts of ta‘anga poetry, hiva/fasi music, and lea oratory, in which this topic is highly developed and refined, in contrast to academia, where it is largely, if not, entirely unexplored. By drawing on the Indigenous Tongan Tā-Vā Time-Space Philosophy of Reality, the critique is placed in the Indigenous Tongan thinking and practice of ‘atamai mind and mafu/fatu …

Siueli ‘Oe Pasifiki: Jewel Of The Pacific – A Sung Poetry Of Praise And Rivalry, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana Māhanga Lear, Sione Lavenita Vaka, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. KaʻIli, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

We examine “Siueli ‘oe Pasifiki” “Jewel of the Pacific,” as a great work of art and literature in poetry of viki/sani praise and fetau rivalry, by Queen Sālote, concerning the mediation of human meanings in language through sustained symmetry and harmony in the production of beauty, which, in turn, results in warmth and fieriness in the creation of climatic elation. The mediation of human meanings is achieved by the artistic and literary device heliaki, defined as “metaphorically saying one thing but historically meaning another,” as in her treatment of siueli jewel, as a heliaki metaphor, for Tonga. Queen Sālote’s affective …

Tuaikaepau: “Slow-But-Sure” – A Sung And Danced Poetry Of Tragedy, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana Māhanga Lear, Sione Lavenita Vaka, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. KaʻIli, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

We critically examine Tuaikaepau “Slow-but-sure” as a sung and danced poetry of tragedy by Queen Sālote, in which she deals with her subject matter of artistic and literary creativity as a text in the broader context of history. Poetry and tragedy are respectively concerned with the mediation of ‘uhinga human meanings, and anga‘i-tangata sociality and anga‘i-manu animality, resulting in fakamā shame. Both poetry and tragedy are conducted in history, treated in Tonga (and Moana Oceania) in plural, temporal–spatial, collectivistic, holistic, and circular ways, as opposed to their treatment in singular, techno–teleological, individualistic, atomistic, and linear modes in the West. History …

Vaka, Fale, Moe Kava: Boat, House, And Kava – Mana Structures, Mana Spaces, Tavakefai‘Ana, Sēmisi Fetokai Potauaine, Bruce Sione To‘A Moa, Sione Lavenita Vaka, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

Our collective aim in this essay is to critically examine the fakafelavai intersection, or fakahoko connection and fakamāvae separation, of the vaka boat, fale house, and kava in terms of both art work and art use. The vaka boat and fale house are associated with tufunga the material arts of tufunga fo‘uvaka boat-building and tufunga langafale house-building, and kava with faiva the performance art of faiva inukava kava-drinking; all bearing immense material–physical, psychological–emotional, and social–cultural significance. All three are variously associated with the ceremonial as tapu structures and places possessing mana power and ivi energy of great potupotutatau harmony and …

Faiva Lova‘A‘Alo: Performance Art Of Rowing, Pā‘Utu-‘O-Vava‘U-Lahi, Adriana Māhanga Lear, Maui-Tāvā-He-Akó, Tēvita O. Ka‘Ili, Hūfanga-He-Ako-Moe-Lotu, ‘Ōkusitino Māhina

Pacific Studies

As authors, we critique the performance art of faiva lova‘a‘alo rowing, which lies in proximity to the performance arts of faiva lovavaka boat-racing, faiva kakau swimming, faiva uku diving, and faiva fānifo surfing, specifically, and faiva faifolau voyaging, faiva toutaivaka navigation, and faiva toutaiika deep-sea fishing and shallow-sea fishing, generally. The latter two, viz., deep-sea fishing and shallow-sea fishing, are known as faiva toutailoloto and faiva toutaimamaha, respectively. All the faiva faifolau, faiva toutaiika, faiva toutailoloto, and faiva toutaimamaha belong in the ha‘a toutai professional class of long-distance navigators and both deep-sea and shallow-sea fishermen. The performance art of rowing, …

Vol. 44 No. 1/2 (2021): Pacific Studies Front Matter, The Jonathan Nāpela Center For Hawaiian And Pacific Islands Studies

Pacific Studies

Front Matter for the Vol. 44, No 1/2-Oct 2021 edition of the Pacific Studies Journal.

Indigenous Conceptions Of Community Organization And Autonomy In Oaxaca’S Sierra Norte: Answers And Resistance To State-Sponsored Practices Of Internal Colonialism, Carter Minnick

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the past century, the Mexican government has continued to reproduce dominant, colonial relationships with its indigenous populations. Within the last few decades, clashes between harmful neoliberal visions of national development and continued demands for indigenous autonomy have only intensified. In the context of such events, this present work seeks to explore a specific conception of community identity, coined as la comunalidad, in the Sierra Norte region of Oaxaca. After the breakdown of its most fundamental tenets, I will attempt to both underscore its position as a framework of resistance in combatting historical and ongoing state-organized aggressions against these communities, …

Government Response To Covid-19 And Gender Discrepancy: Tour Operator Perspective From New Zealand, Marie Haley, Asif Hussain

Journal of Sustainability and Resilience

The New Zealand government closed the international borders for the first time in history to pursuit an elimination strategy to COVID-19. This has had a severe impact upon tour operators who have been excluded from a free and fair market, to protect the broader economic and public health systems. This paper argues that the government response needs a focus at the whanau and community level, with a targeted focus on women empowerment in the communities that are dependent upon international tourism. The government should pursue an approach of engagement with systems to facilitate community lead COVID-19 recovery. Thus, allowing the …

Building Destination Tourism Alliances In The Central-Western Region Of Mexico For The Recovery Of Post-Covid-19 Tourism, Silvia María López Ruiz

Journal of Sustainability and Resilience

This study focuses on knowing the joint work between Mexico’s tourist destinations and the private sector, promoting proximity tourism for the recovery of tourism after the Covid-19 pandemic, through the creation of the “Central West Pact for Tourism” in Mexico. For the qualitative empirical analysis based on a case study, it is based on secondary data and an in-depth interview conducted virtually with two pioneering leaders of this pact and responsible for tourism management in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico. In addition, a qualitative content analysis of the project’s official website (Viaja En Corto – Descubre El Centro de …

From Hurricanes To Pandemics: Community-Based Transformation And Destination Resilience In Utuado, Puerto Rico, Patrick J. Holladay, Pablo Méndez-Lázaro, Katja Brundiers

Journal of Sustainability and Resilience

Community-based tourism that is both sustainable and resilient lends strength to the community-based tourism system. Local mobilization of resources, cohesiveness, coordination, opportunities for change, healthy social and natural capital, economic diversification, strong leadership, and management that embraces creativity all build resilience. An example from Utuado, Puerto Rico is presented that illustrates these concepts with conceptual parallel of Hurricane Maria’s devastating impact to that of COVID-19. Post-coronavirus tourism should support local communities that could be resilient, creative, adaptive and transformative while it protects and provides long-term benefits to local communities and people.

The New Beginnings Newsletter, September 2021, Wokini Initiative

Wokini Initiative: The New Beginnings Newsletter

American Indian Student Center Anniversary Celebration
Grand Opening Schedule
Book of the Month
Dakota Word of the Month
Lakota Word of the Month
Upcoming Events @ AISC

Taking The Fiction Out Of Science Fiction: A Conversation About Indigenous Futurisms, Grace L. Dillon, Pedro Neves Marques

Indigenous Nations Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

In our conversation, Dillon talks about key concepts within Indigenous-led science fiction and offers a genealogy of the term “Indigenous Futurisms,” going back to authors like Gerald Vizenor and Diane Glancy; in doing this she provides a precious bibliography at a time when some of the most exciting science fiction writing today is coming from nonwhite authors. She considers stories with topics ranging from technology, environmental justice, and relations between human and other-than-human creatures, showing that thinking with science fiction offers a rich path to decolonize the notion of science itself, freeing up space for political imaginations beyond a one-world …

A 10-Year Post-Analysis Of The Maya Health Toolkit For Medical Providers, Lorenna Garcia-Bochas

Master of Science in Integrative Biology Theses

Researchers have often overlooked America's Indigenous community when conducting health disparities research. In Central and South America, The World Bank 2015 report identifies 774 indigenous groups living today (Davis-Castro, n.d.). One of the oldest known is the Maya people. The Maya have been through various cultural struggles, from the Spanish conquistadors of the past to current anti-indigenous discrimination, violence, and rhetoric. The historical conflict and prejudice have contributed to why many Maya migrate north to the United States for a better opportunity and a more peaceful life for their families. In doing so, they face many health risks to their …

The New Beginnings Newsletter, August 2021, Wokini Initiative

Wokini Initiative: The New Beginnings Newsletter

Wokini Scholar Ready for Senior Year at SDSU
Dakota Word of the Month
Lakota Word of the Month
Book of the Month
Wokini Challenge Grant Spotlight : The Bridge between Indigenous Storytelling & Scientific Communication
Upcoming Events @ AISC

Elder Of The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, Marshall Mckay, Jenessa Howard

History in the Making

No abstract provided.

Let's Change The Subject: Grounding Social Change In Indigenous History And Philosophy, Robert Michael Ruehl

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This article urges altering the discourse around social change. Too often it is antagonistic and negative; it also overlooks continuing colonizing practices and how injustices to Indigenous peoples have helped to shape past and current injustices toward other groups. First, the article foregrounds the religio-political ideology of the Doctrine of Christian Discovery and the boarding-school experience to remind readers about the broader criminal history of the United States toward Indigenous nations and peoples and how colonization is not a thing of the past. Any call for social change should remember this. Second, the article looks at three dimensions of Indigenous …

Review Of Sexual Health Issues Linked With Cardiovascular Disease And Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus In Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Males, Veronica Collins, Tamara J. Swann, Jane Burns, Tim Moss, Mick Adams

Australian Indigenous HealthBulletin

There are well established links between male sexual health conditions and chronic disease, particularly cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Erectile dysfunction (ED) and low testosterone are two sexual health conditions that are relatively common among the wider male population. However, there is a lack of data specifically about these sexual problems among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males.

One of the most important findings of research regarding the links between sexual health and chronic disease is that ED can be a risk marker for future CVD or undiagnosed T2DM. Understanding these links can lead to more holistic …

Indigenous Reintegrative Shaming: A Comparison Of Indigenous Legal Traditions Of Canada And Braithwaite's Theory Of Reintegrative Shaming, Emily Sinclair

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

Upon the arrival of European settlers in Canada, Indigenous legal traditions have continuously been undermined as customary law with an insignificant role in crime prevention and sanctioning. This paper will argue that Indigenous legal traditions deserve a larger role in Indigenous self-governance as their customs demonstrate aspects of crucial crime prevention theories such as Braithwaite’s theory of reintegrative shaming. The interconnection between reintegrative shaming and Indigenous legal traditions pre-contact and post-contact demonstrate concepts of community socialization, informal sanctions and restorative practices that foster the wellbeing of the community, victims and offenders. As such, Braithwaite’s theory demonstrates the importance of each …